John millwaed banks



(No Model.)

J. M. BANKS.

FASTENING FOR BRACELETS 0R NEGKLETS. No. 277,537. Patented May 15,1883.

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. UNITED S ATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN MlLL-VVARD BANKS, 0F BIRMINGHAM, COUNTY OF WARWICK,

ENGLAND.

FASTENING FOR BRACELETS AND NECKL ETS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 277,537, dated May 15, 18183.

Application filed February 21, 1883. (No model.) Patented in England March 5, 1881. No. 951.

To all whom it may concern Be itknown thatI, JOHN MILLWARID BANKS, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Birmingham, in the county of Var'wick, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fastenings for Bracelets and N ecklets, (for which I have received Letters Patent in Great Britain No. 951, dated 5th March, 1881,) of which the following is a suitable to enter the said slot, and to 'work in the said slot as a guide on the closing of the said bracelet. The said flat tongue is hollow and open at its sides or longer edges. In the said fiat hollow tongue are two teeth on the sides of two arms held apart by a suitable spiral or other spring. When the spring is in its normal or uncompressed state these teeth project from the sides of the hollow tongue. Pushers working in the end of the bracelet, having the hollow tongue, project from each side of the bracelet. The inner ends of these pushers bear, respectively, against the toothed arms.

The action of the parts is as follows: When the bracelet is closed the hollow tongue on one end enters the slot in the other. When the two ends have nearly come in contact the inclined sides of the teeth are brought against the ends of the slot, and the said teeth are pressed into the hollow tongue. Immediately before the closing is completed the said teeth have passed the endsot' the slot, and the said teeth, by the action of the spring, snap behind the ends of the slot and prevent the withdrawal of the tongue from the slot. The bracelet is thereby fastened. In order to unfasten the bracelet, it. is only necessary to press upon the pushers with the thumb and finger, when the teeth are forced inward and no longer oppose the withdrawal of the hollow tongue from the slot.

Instead of having toothed arms in separate parts, a U-shaped spring may be employed, the teeth being formed on the legs of the spring and thepushers bearing upon the tops or ends thereof. When such construction is adopted the elasticity of the piece supplies the place of a spiral spring to press apart the teeth.

I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the manner in which my invention is to be performed.

Figure 1 represents in side elevation closed, and Fig. 2 in side elevation open, a bracelet provided with a fastening constructed. according to my invention. Fig. 3 represents the same view as Fig. 1, with a portion in section, drawn to a larger scale; and Fig. 4. represents the same view as Fig.2, with a portion in section, drawn to a larger scale. Figs. 5, 6, and

7 represent parts of the bracelet and fastening drawn to the same scale as Figs. 3and 4:.

The same letters indicate the same parts in the several figures of the drawings.

a b are the two halves of the bracelet,jointed together, as usual. On the meeting face 6 of the half-bracelet a a fiat tongue, 0, is fixed, and in the meeting face of the other half, b, is a slot, d, of a size and shape suitable for the said flat tongue 0 to enter, the said flat tongue acting as a guide on the closing of a bracelet. The flat tongue 0, in conjunction with the angnlar plate 0, which constitutes the meeting face of the halt-bracelet a, is shown separately in front elevation, side elevation, and edge view in Fig. 5. The said flat guide or tongue 0 is hollow and open at its sides, the said fiat tongue being made by folding or doubling a strip of metal, one end of the doubled strip being connected to the angular plate e, as best seen in the edge view of Fig. 5.

Situated in the hollow flat tongue 0 are two teeth, f f, the outer side of each tooth being inclined. Made in one piece with each of the inclined teeth f is apnsher, 9. The inclined teeth and their pushers are represented detached from the bracelet in Fig. 7. The said teeth and pushers are arranged in the meeting end of the part a of the bracelet in the manner positions their inclined edges slightly project from the open edges or sides of the projecting flat tongue 0. The outwardmotion of the said teeth is limited by the recesses at t'in them bearing against the edges of the slot in the angular plate 0, through which the tongue 0 is passed and to which it is connected. The push-. ers g 9 project from the edges of the part a of the bracelet, and work between the angular plate 6 and the closed back 0 of the tongue 0, the said closed back acting as a stop to limit the inward motion of the pushers. The back 0 is a separate piece inserted and fixed between the open ends of the tongue 0 in the making up of the bracelet. An edge View of the pushers carried by the angular plate 0 is represented in Fig.0. When the bracelet is closed the hollow tongue 0 on the part a enters the slot (Z in the other part, b. As the bracelet is being closed the inclined, sides of the teeth ff are brought against the ends of the slot d, and the said teeth are pressed into the hollow tongue 0, and the springh between them compressed. Immediately before the closing of the bracelet is completed the teeth ff have passed the ends of the slot 6?, and by the action of the spring h the shoulders t t ofthe said teeth snap behind the ends of the slot (1, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and the two parts of the bracelet are fastened together. To unfasten the bracelet, the pushers g g are pressed inward by the thumb and finger. The teeth f fare thereby forced inward, and their shoulders withdrawn from the edges of the slot d.

The bracelet is thus unfastened and the two parts may be opened. m

Instead of using two separate inelastic inclined teeth, ff, carrying pushers, as described and illustrated, the teeth which engage with the slot 01 may be carried by or made'in one piece with the arms of a U-shaped spring arranged in the hollow tongue 0, separate pushersbeing employed to release the said elastic teeth for unfastening the bracelet. The action of this arrangementis inall essential respects the same as that described and represented.

The parts of a fastening for a necklet are constructed and arranged substantially in the manner herein described and illustrated with respect to a bracelet-fastenin g.

Having now described the nature of my invention and the manner in which it is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my invention 1. In a fastening for bracelets and similar articles of jewelry, the combination of the fiat hollow tongue and the spring-catches or fastening devices inclosed in said tongue, the said parts being attached to one of the meeting ends of the bracelet or other article, and adapted to engage with a slot in the other end, substantially as described.

2. The combination of theflat hollow tongue, the inclined teeth inclosed in said tongue. the

pushers connected withsaid teeth, and the spring for pressing them apart, substantially as described.

JOHN MILLWARD BANKS. Witnesses RICHARD SKERRETT, ARTHUR JOHN POWELL. 

